Hannah Volk is a senior dietetics major from New Ulm, Minnesota. She also is a Specialist for the North Dakota Army National Guard.
For many NDSU students, “service” is their middle name. Senior Hannah Volk is one of those students.
The dietetics major from New Ulm, Minnesota, is also a Specialist with the North Dakota Army National Guard’s 141st Maneuver Enhancement Brigade. She has served in the Guard for three years.
“Many people in my family are in the military. I wanted to join, but also wanted to pursue a college education,” Volk said. “Joining the guard gave me the opportunity to do both.”
In 2019, her unit went to Romania on a mission to strategically maneuver military vehicles and equipment across a body of water. Her specific duties focused on human resources tasks such as personnel, overseeing strength management and maintaining emergency notification data.
“My personal take-away from that mission was to appreciate the little things in life such as a shower, clean clothes and electricity,” she said.
She and her Guard colleagues also helped out at Fargo testing sites during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“My NDSU professors were able to work with my schedule, and were very considerate of my situation,” said Volk, who plans a career as a Clinical Registered Dietitian for the geriatric population or persons with genetic disorders. “I never saw myself as a leader, but with the education I received and my experiences with the Guard and at NDSU, I have grown exponentially.”
NDSU welcomes student-soldiers like Volk. The Veterans Educational Training office is ready to help, as is the Veteran Alliance Organization, known as VALOR.
“I’ve seen great support from NDSU’s leadership for our military students,” said Jim Stoddard, assistant director for veterans educational training. “There are a number of ‘best practices’ that contribute to military student success that are recommended by the U.S. Department of Education, and in February 2019, President Bresciani formally committed NDSU to implementing those research-based, proven principles here. With the continued support of NDSU’s leadership team and the dedication of NDSU’s VALOR group, we’ve been able to make additional improvements.”
Put yourself on a path to success. Apply to NDSU today.